In general, the invention features methods and compounds for increasing cell death.
Cell growth is a tightly regulated process. When the body has no need for new cells, but cells nonetheless divide in an unregulated manner, the result is cancer. Cancer therapies are directed at controlling the rapid proliferation of cells and/or controlling the differentiation rate of cells, as an undifferentiated cell is highly proliferative. One way in which the proliferation of cancer cells may be controlled is by killing such unregulated dividing cells.
The family of Bcl-2 proteins plays a central role in the regulation of cell life and death, acting by modulating apoptosis, a specific type of cell death. Some members of this family, for example, Bax, Bad, and Bak promote apoptosis, while other members of the family, for example, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL, Bcl-w, and Mcl-1 inhibit apoptosis. The precise mechanism by which the various Bcl-2 family members promote either cell viability or cell death has not yet been resolved.
One method for treating cancer involves controlling the expression and/or activity of Bcl-2 family member proteins. In particular, methods that decrease the expression or activity of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members or increase the expression or activity of pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 family members would be useful for treating cancer.